On June 13th, 2015 one of our members, George Freeman, was detained for over an hour after a Tampa Police Officer unsuccessfully attempted sneak up behind him while fishing and grab his holstered handgun. George turned immediately when he felt an unknown person grab for his gun while reaching for a concealed backup gun. As soon as he saw the uniformed officer George stopped before he drew his backup and did not resist the seizure of his handguns. He also presented his valid Florida Concealed Carry License to the officer.

This extremely dangerous and uncalled-for move by the police officer to seize George’s legal handgun didn’t end once the officer found out that Mr. Freeman was not doing anything wrong. After detaining our member for over an hour the police realized that they could not find any crime to charge him with. So they issued him an order, a trespass notice that prevents him from going to the public pier at Ballast Point for one year.

George Freeman was NOT breaking any law but he was banned from the city pier for exercising his Second Amendment Right to Bear Arms.

This happened at the same park that we have often used as a venue for our MONTHLY Open Carry Fishing Events since 2010 with the full knowledge of the City of Tampa and prior coordination with the City Attorney and the Police Department.

The Tampa Police also questioned Mr. Freeman in an attempt to determine the identities of our other members. A clear violation of their First Amendment Right to Associational Privacy and Right of Peaceful Assembly.

The State Florida preempts local firearms related policies, trespassing lawful gun owners from public property is against the law. It was also a violation of George’s constitutional rights.

This will not go unanswered. We have filed a lawsuit against Tampa to enforce Florida’s Firearms Preemption Law, the Constitutionally Protected Rights of our members, and to have Mr. Freeman’s trespass order, search, and seizure ruled illegal.

ISSUE: The Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has issued a new framework for determining whether certain projectiles are "primarily intended for sporting purposes" which if approved, would effectively withdraw the armor piercing exemption SS109/M855 5.56mm cartridges commonly used in AR15 platforms currently enjoy. As a result, manufacturers will be prohibited from producing the cartridges, and importation will be banned.

BACKGROUND: Since the creation of the political term "assault weapon", anti-gun administrations have attempted to ban or otherwise prevent ownership of firearms meeting this cosmetic and ergonomic feature based definition, primarily targeting the AR15 platform. The Clinton administration successfully got the 1994 Assault Weapons Ban enacted for a ten-year period. In 2004, Congress refused to renew the ban, citing Department of Justice reports which showed the ban to have appreciable effect on gun homicides and violent crime. However, since the election of President Obama, the gun community has fended off relentless efforts by the administration, Attorney General Eric Holder and sympathetic congresspersons to introduce ineffective gun control initiatives.

Having little to no success in the Democratically controlled Senate during the administration's first term, it has become painfully obvious that with the loss of the Senate to the Republicans, Congress is no longer a viable route. In his most recent State of the Union address, President Obama vowed to bypass Congress"whenever and wherever (he) can" through the use of executive actions to get his mandates enforced.

AG Holder, now out of office, recently lamented: "I mean, really reasonable gun safety measures that were supported by the vast majority of the American people is for me something that I take personally as a failure."

It is obvious this latest assault on gun rights is an attempt at ramming gun control down the throats of Americans in spite of the opposition of Congress and the people, focusing once again on the most popular sporting rifle in US history, with over 4 million AR15s in circulation. With the 2008 Heller ruling affirming the right to keep and bear arms is NOT limited to only sporting purposes, and the AP ban justified entirely on a sporting purpose requirement, we believe this initiative to be unconstitutional on its face. Additionally, the straw man argument of protection of law enforcement officers is simply a "what if", as the number of LEOs shot through body armor by AP rounds is practically non-existent.

By federal law, the term "armor piercing ammunition" means-

(i) a projectile or projectile core which may be used in a handgun and which is constructed entirely (excluding the presence of traces of other substances) from one or a combination of tungsten alloys, steel, iron, brass, bronze, beryllium copper, or depleted uranium;

The bullet (projectile) must have a core made entirelyout of the metals defined by law. The M855's projectile core is primarily lead with only a steel tip. It simply does not meet the statutory definition of an armor piercing round under any reasonable interpretation of the law.

IMPACT: SS109/M855 ammunition will become prohibited and unavailable.

WHY SHOULD YOU ACT? Although the most popular sporting rifle in US history, there are many gun owners who do not own an AR15, and have no dog in this fight. Hunters take note - during the Clinton administration, the original armor piercing ammo ban proposal would have included practically every common hunting and target round. In short, your ammo could be next!

Florida Carry vehemently opposes this attack on one of the most popular and common cartridges in use today, and urges its members and friends to take immediate action to comment on this extreme move to further infringe on the right of the people to keep and bear arms.

HOW CAN YOU HELP? The easiest way to comment is by email.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before March 16, 2015.

For your convenience, feel free to cut and paste the following suggested comment into the form, and edit as you see fit. Thank you for your immediate assistance in this urgent matter.

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I oppose the ATF classification of SS109/M855 as "armor piercing" and the proposed withdraw of the current "sporting purpose" exception for this common ammunition.

By federal law, the term "armor piercing ammunition" means-

(i) a projectile or projectile core which may be used in a handgun and which is constructed entirely (excluding the presence of traces of other substances) from one or a combination of tungsten alloys, steel, iron, brass, bronze, beryllium copper, or depleted uranium;

The bullet (projectile) must have a core made entirely out of the metals defined by law. The M855's projectile core is primarily lead with only a steel tip component. It simply does not meet the statutory definition of an armor piercing round under any reasonable interpretation of the law.

M855 ammunition is most commonly used for lawful target shooting, hunting, and competition. Furthermore, the round is easily defeated by armor, including the vests mandated for use by most police departments.

Once again, I oppose the designation of SS109/M855 cartridges as "armor piercing", and urge the bureau to discontinue its efforts to ban common use ammunition.

Florida Carry is very pleased to announce the revision of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Licensing Division (DOACS) procedures regarding the clearing of potential disqualifying information.

In recent months, we had received an increasing number of complaints from members who had been notified by DOACS that processing on their concealed carry license applications had been suspended pending receipt of documents showing closure of, in some cases, decades old arrests. Many of these records were no longer in existence as a result of a normal procedure for the purging of inactive official records, had occurred in other states, and/or were for offenses committed as a juvenile. For those applicants, this essentially barred them from ever getting a carry license in Florida. Obviously, this was untenable.

A meeting was arranged with DOACS in which we presented our concerns with the procedure. As it turns out, DOACS originally sent letters to the jurisdictions involved, and in the absence of any response or the receipt of proper case closure, would issue the license in accordance with statute. Faced with budget issues, the department changed their procedure several years ago and placed the burden of gathering documents on the applicant. Unchallenged, this went on until it was pointed out at the meeting that statute did not authorize DOACS to delegate that responsibility. As a result, DOACS has agreed to re-assume the task of requesting those documents necessary to ensure a license will be either issued or denied, and no more applications will indefinitely held in abeyance.

The new procedure is as follows:

Upon receipt of an application, DOACS will start the statutory maximum 90 day clock to either issue or deny the application. Should any unresolved potentially disqualifying issue(s) arise, DOACS will start a new 90 day clock, and send letters to both the applicant, informing him of the delay, and to the jurisdiction(s) where the issue(s) were originated. If in 90 days clearing documents are received, the license will be immediately issued. If documents are not received, the license will be issued at the end of the second 90-day period. In no case should an application be pending for more than 180 days. Additionally, DOACS has agreed to send letters to all applicants whose applications have been pending, some for years, advising them of the new procedure, and asking if they still wish their applications to be processed.

Florida Carry continues to work on behalf of all law-abiding Floridians, protecting and expanding their right to self-defense. If you are not a dues-paying member, please consider joining us today by clicking the "Join Us" link provided. It is only through your membership that we are able to accomplish gains like this one. Thank you and stay safe!

Your gun rights are under constant assault from the likes of billionaire Michael Bloomberg, right here in Florida!

While you were sleeping last night, the anti-gun forces were wide awake and hard at work.

The right to keep and bear arms has a lot of enemies. They come in the form of politicians, activists, and even law enforcement organizations like our own Florida Sheriffs Association. Since 2011, Florida Carry has become a force to be reckoned with. In three short years, the organization has grown from two ex-military gun owners with an idea, to over twelve thousand members and supporters!!! But fighting in the courts and Tallahassee costs money, and we need more to expand the fight. Right now, we have several gun rights and preemption cases in various stages of progress.

The City of Tallahassee for example, has an unlawful ordinance on the books which prohibits the discharge of firearms within the city limits. The city maintains they don't enforce the ordinance. Yet when their own city attorney and police chief recommended its repeal, While other mayor across the country have caught on to Bloomberg's true intent, Mayors Against Illegal Guns (MAIG) member and mayor of Tallahassee John Marks, along with several other city councilmembers ignored their attorney and police chief, and stated on record that they didn't care if they were violating preemption, and would indefinitely table the motion to repeal in order to deny their citizens rights granted to them by the Legislature.

Florida Carry and the Second Amendment Foundation (www.saf.org) have joined forces and filed suit as co-plaintiffs against the city, the mayor, and those members of the council who voted to ignore the clear intent of the statute.

Likewise, Florida Carry has filed suit against Broward County, which has ignored repeated demands over 2 years to repeal unlawful ordinances which regulate guns in defiance of preemption. The county only modified the offending ordinances to include an exception for firearms possessed and carried lawfully in response to the filing of our lawsuit, and now claims that the problem is solved, the case moot, and should be dismissed. But what is to prevent the county commission from reinstating the ordinances in their original form once the case is dismissed, and continuing the cycle in response to lawsuits ad infinitum?

We also have pending suits against the University of Florida, St. Petersburg College, the City of Leesburg, and the City of Daytona Beach.

But the courtroom is but one front. We also have to fight in Tallahassee at the legislature. Every year since our incorporation, we've seen multiple bills filed by gun-hating legislators attacking such basic tenets as your right to Stand Your Ground in an attack, the Castle Doctrine that authorizes deadly force in a home invasion, and even one that would have required an annual mental health evaluation just to buy ammo.

Widely attributed to Plato, the quote "The penalty good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men." is apropos. There is power in numbers, and we need to count you among our numbers.

We need your help! Florida Carry is all volunteer, and has no corporate sponsorship or institutional donors. It is only through membership dues and donations that we are able to fund the fight for your rights.

Please, anything will help. If you're not a member, why not? If you are, and can spare anything at all, consider helping us help you. To be blunt, during the legislative sessions, we mostly need you advocacy... Right now, we pray you donate some of your hard earned money.

You can join or donate at www.floridacarry.org or use the links at the left of this email. And don't forget, you can support Florida Carry simply by shopping at Amazon. Just use the link www.fl2ashop.com to access Amazon, and they will send Florida Carry a very small portion of your purchase price with absolutely no additional cost to you!!!

Florida Carry, Inc.Fighting for All Floridians Rights to Keep and Bear Arms. ----------------------------------------------

Florida Carry sues Broward County for continued violations of state firearms laws.

Friday, May 02, 2014 For Immediate Release

Fort Lauderdale FL - Florida Carry, Inc. has today filed a lawsuit against Broward County and County Administrator Bertha Henry seeking a permanent injunction to protect the rights of law abiding gun owners from the county’s multiple illegal ordinances that burden nearly all aspects of firearms ownership, use, transfer, and possession.

Since 1987 the Florida Legislature has preempted firearms law and issued state-wide licenses to carry for self-defense. In December Florida Carry won a similar case against the University of North Florida (UNF). In Florida Carry v. UNF the First District Court of Appeal ruled that "The legislature’s primacy in firearms regulation derives directly from the Florida Constitution... Indeed, the legislature has reserved for itself the whole field of firearms regulation in section 790.33(1)..."

“Since 2011, Florida Carry has prompted the repeal of anti-gun ordinances and regulations in over 200 Florida jurisdictions, including municipalities, counties, colleges and state agencies,” noted Florida Carry Executive Director Sean Caranna. “Usually the jurisdiction is responsive to our notification that there is a problem and no lawsuit is necessary. It is a rare and unfortunate circumstance when local government leaders decide to willfully break state law, despite the personal penalties. When local officials are willing to knowingly violate the law in order to suppress the rights of law-abiding gun owners, they can expect that we’re going to make them pay for it.”

Broward County has ignored repeated attempts by Florida Carry to gain its compliance with state law and left us with no choice but to file this case. When local officials refuse to stop breaking the law in order to deny the rights of Floridians, Florida Carry will act to demand that people’s rights be protected.

Broward County Administrator Bertha Henry is also named as a defendant in the case. Florida Carry is represented by Miami attorneys Michael T. Davis and Benedict P. Kuehne of The Law Offices of Benedict P. Kuehne, P.A. and Florida Carry General Counsel Eric J. Friday with Fletcher & Phillips of Jacksonville.

About: Florida Carry, Inc. is a non-profit, non-partisan, grassroots organization dedicated to advancing the fundamental civil right of all Floridians to keep and bear arms for self defense as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution and Article I, Section 8 of the Florida Constitution. Florida Carry, Inc. was organized by a group of Florida self-defense rights activists in order to better coordinate activities, effectively lobby the state legislature, and provide a legal entity capable of filing suit to demand compliance with state and federal law. Florida Carry stands only to represent our members and the over 8 million gun owners of Florida. We are not beholden to any national organization's agenda that may compromise that mission. Florida Carry works tirelessly toward repealing and striking down ill-conceived gun control laws and regulations that have been proven to provide safe havens to criminals and be deadly to law abiding citizens.

Florida Carry, Inc.Fighting for All Floridians Rights to Keep and Bear Arms. ----------------------------------------------

Florida Carry and the Second Amendment Foundation sue the City of Tallahassee, MAIG Mayor Marks, and each city council member that voted to knowingly violate state firearms laws.

Friday, May 02, 2014 For Immediate Release

Tallahassee FL - Florida Carry, Inc. has today filed a lawsuit against the City of Tallahassee and all but one of the city commissioners seeking a permanent injunction to protect the rights of law abiding gun owners from the city’s illegal ordinances prohibiting the use of firearms without even providing an exception for self-defense. Since 1987 the Florida Legislature has preempted firearms law and issued state-wide licenses to carry for self-defense. In December Florida Carry won a similar case against the University of North Florida (UNF). In Florida Carry v. UNF the First District Court of Appeal ruled that "The legislature’s primacy in firearms regulation derives directly from the Florida Constitution... Indeed, the legislature has reserved for itself the whole field of firearms regulation in section 790.33(1)..."

Subsequent to Florida Carry notifying the City of Tallahassee that its anti-gun ordinances were in violation of state law, and despite recommendations from the city’s own attorney and Police Chief that the illegal ordinances be repealed, Mayor Marks and all but one City Commissioner openly defied state law in order to continue violations of people’s civil rights.

We’re happy to partner with Florida Carry on this legal action,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan Gottlieb. “This is not the first time we have had to take a city to court for violating a state preemption law. Why municipal governments still don’t understand the concept of preemption is a mystery to us.”

“We became aware of Tallahassee’s illegal regulation as we looked to expand SAF’s on-going preemption project, which has rolled back dozens of illegal gun regulations in the six states we have targeted so far,” added SAF General Counsel Miko Tempski.

“Since 2011, Florida Carry has prompted the repeal of anti-gun ordinances and regulations in over 200 Florida jurisdictions, including municipalities, counties, colleges and state agencies,” noted Florida Carry Executive Director Sean Caranna. “Usually the jurisdiction is responsive to our notification that there is a problem and no lawsuit is necessary. It is a rare and unfortunate circumstance when local government leaders decide to willfully break state law, despite the personal penalties. When local officials are willing to knowingly violate the law in order to suppress the rights of law-abiding gun owners, they can expect that we’re going to make them pay for it.”

The lawsuit contends that under the city’s ordinance, which criminalizes the discharge of firearms, there is no provision that carves out an exception for the lawful use of a firearm in self-defense. Gottlieb said there was a chance for an “easy fix” earlier this year, but that motion was tabled.

“Clearly,” Gottlieb observed, “Tallahassee has way over-stepped its authority under state preemption. The Florida Legislature has exclusive domain over firearms regulation. When the law was passed, it nullified all existing, and future, city and county firearm ordinances and regulations.

“Mayor Marks and his colleagues on the city commission knew all of this,” he added, “but they rejected an opportunity to bring the city into compliance. Their stubbornness really left us no choice but to join Florida Carry in this action. Named as defendants in the Tallahassee case are Mayor John Marks, and City Commissioners Nancy Miller, Andrew Gillum, and Gil Ziffer.

About: Florida Carry, Inc. is a non-profit, non-partisan, grassroots organization dedicated to advancing the fundamental civil right of all Floridians to keep and bear arms for self defense as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution and Article I, Section 8 of the Florida Constitution. Florida Carry, Inc. was organized by a group of Florida self-defense rights activists in order to better coordinate activities, effectively lobby the state legislature, and provide a legal entity capable of filing suit to demand compliance with state and federal law. Florida Carry stands only to represent our members and the over 8 million gun owners of Florida. We are not beholden to any national organization's agenda that may compromise that mission. Florida Carry works tirelessly toward repealing and striking down ill-conceived gun control laws and regulations that have been proven to provide safe havens to criminals and be deadly to law abiding citizens.

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]]>sean@floridacarry.org (Sean Caranna)ROOTSat, 03 May 2014 13:32:18 +0000Florida Carry files lawsuits against Tallahassee and Broward Countyhttps://www.floridacarry.org/news/102-florida-carry-files-lawsuits-against-tallahassee-and-broward-county
https://www.floridacarry.org/news/102-florida-carry-files-lawsuits-against-tallahassee-and-broward-countyFlorida Carry today filed lawsuits against the City of Tallahassee and Broward County for blatant violations of Florida’s law that preempts local gun control.

Friday, May 2nd, 2014For Immediate Release

Florida Carry today filed two lawsuits for blatant violations of Florida’s law that preempts local gun control.

Joined by the Second Amendment Foundation, the first case filed is against the City of Tallahassee.

In the second case, Florida Carry filed against Broward County.

“Since 2011, Florida Carry has prompted the repeal of anti-gun ordinances and regulations in over 200 Florida jurisdictions, including municipalities, counties, colleges and state agencies,” noted Florida Carry Executive Director Sean Caranna. “Usually the jurisdiction is responsive to our notification that there is a problem and no lawsuit is necessary. It is a rare and unfortunate circumstance when local government leaders decide to willfully break state law, despite the personal penalties. When local officials are willing to knowingly violate the law in order to suppress the rights of law-abiding gun owners, they can expect that we’re going to make them pay for it.”

Broward County has ignored repeated attempts by Florida Carry to gain its compliance with state law and left us with no choice but to file this case. When local officials refuse to stop breaking the law in order to deny the rights of Floridians, Florida Carry will act to demand that people’s rights be protected. Broward County Administrator Bertha Henry is also named as a defendant in the case. Florida Carry is represented by Miami attorneys Michael T. Davis and Benedict P. Kuehne of The Law Offices of Benedict P. Kuehne, P.A. and Florida Carry General Counsel Eric J. Friday with Fletcher & Phillips of Jacksonville.

Florida Carry, Inc. and the Second Amendment Foundation joined forces in the lawsuit against the City of Tallahassee for refusing to repeal ordinances restricting the use of firearms in defiance of Florida’s firearms preemption law.

“We’re happy to partner with Florida Carry on this legal action,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan Gottlieb. “This is not the first time we have had to take a city to court for violating a state preemption law. Why municipal governments still don’t understand the concept of preemption is a mystery to us”

“Clearly,” Gottlieb observed, “Tallahassee has way over-stepped its authority under state preemption. The Florida Legislature has exclusive domain over firearms regulation. When the law was passed, it nullified all existing, and future, city and county firearm ordinances and regulations.

“Mayor Marks and his colleagues on the city commission knew all of this,” he added, “but they rejected an opportunity to bring the city into compliance in February. Their stubbornness really left us no choice but to join Florida Carry in this action.”

Named as defendants in the Tallahassee case are Mayor John Marks, and City Commissioners Nancy Miller, Andrew Gillum, and Gil Ziffer. SAF and Florida Carry are represented by Jacksonville attorneys Lesley McKinney with McKinney, Wilkes & Mee, and Florida Carry General Counsel Eric J. Friday with Fletcher & Phillips.

Florida Carry is a non-profit, non-partisan, grassroots organization dedicated to advancing the fundamental civil right of all Floridians to keep and bear arms for self-defense as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution and the Florida Constitution's Declaration of Rights.

Florida Carry, Inc. was organized in order to better coordinate activities, effectively lobby the state legislature, and to provide a legal entity capable of filing suit to demand compliance with state and federal law. Florida Carry stands to represent our members, the approximately 8 million gun owners, and countless knife and defensive weapon carriers of Florida.

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]]>sean@floridacarry.org (Sean Caranna)ROOTFri, 02 May 2014 17:20:21 +0000Florida Carry & SAF v. City of Tallahasseehttps://www.floridacarry.org/litigation/21-flcourts/103-florida-carry-saf-v-city-of-tallahassee
https://www.floridacarry.org/litigation/21-flcourts/103-florida-carry-saf-v-city-of-tallahasseeFlorida Carry, Inc. and the Second Amendment Foundation joined forces in the lawsuit against the City of Tallahassee for refusing to repeal ordinances restricting the use of firearms in defiance of Florida’s firearms preemption law.

“We’re happy to partner with Florida Carry on this legal action,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan Gottlieb. “This is not the first time we have had to take a city to court for violating a state preemption law. Why municipal governments still don’t understand the concept of preemption is a mystery to us”

“Clearly,” Gottlieb observed, “Tallahassee has way over-stepped its authority under state preemption. The Florida Legislature has exclusive domain over firearms regulation. When the law was passed, it nullified all existing, and future, city and county firearm ordinances and regulations.

“Mayor Marks and his colleagues on the city commission knew all of this,” he added, “but they rejected an opportunity to bring the city into compliance in February. Their stubbornness really left us no choice but to join Florida Carry in this action.”

Named as defendants in the Tallahassee case are Mayor John Marks, and City Commissioners Nancy Miller, Andrew Gillum, and Gil Ziffer. SAF and Florida Carry are represented by Jacksonville attorneys Lesley McKinney with McKinney, Wilkes & Mee, and Florida Carry General Counsel Eric J. Friday with Fletcher & Phillips.

“Since 2011, Florida Carry has prompted the repeal of anti-gun ordinances and regulations in over 200 Florida jurisdictions, including municipalities, counties, colleges and state agencies,” noted Florida Carry Executive Director Sean Caranna. “Usually the jurisdiction is responsive to our notification that there is a problem and no lawsuit is necessary. It is a rare and unfortunate circumstance when local government leaders decide to willfully break state law, despite the personal penalties. When local officials are willing to knowingly violate the law in order to suppress the rights of law-abiding gun owners, they can expect that we’re going to make them pay for it.”

Broward County has ignored repeated attempts since 2011 by Florida Carry to gain its compliance with state law and left us with no choice but to file this case. When local officials refuse to stop breaking the law in order to deny the rights of Floridians, Florida Carry will act to demand that people’s rights be protected.

Broward County Administrator Bertha Henry is also named as a defendant in the case. Florida Carry is represented by Miami attorneys Michael T. Davis and Benedict P. Kuehne of The Law Offices of Benedict P. Kuehne, P.A. and Florida Carry General Counsel Eric J. Friday with Fletcher & Phillips of Jacksonville.